Visual Comedy and Creativity blog for performers and artistic problem solvers. There is an art to foolery and foolery in all the arts.

Friday, July 31, 2009

How to Think Like a Fool #48: Enjoy Failure

PRETEND: Enjoy Failure"If you can't succeed every time, learn to fail magnificently!"—Avner the Eccentric

I planned to write this post this morning and am now writing it this evening. Fail! Yay!

Don't just set yourself up for failure, celebrate failure! Relish it and revel in it! Every time you make a mistake, clap, cheer, have a little failure parade around the room.

Fools enjoy failure when the alternative is to wallow in despair. They laugh back at a culture that mocks those who flop or are perceived as imperfect. Bullies lose their power when they are preempted by the fool who loves to crash and burn. Even if that bully is just actually another voice in the head of the fool.

Like seeking rejection, enjoying failure does not come naturally to most people. Certainly not for me. It is a habit to be practiced and developed. Instead of moping, crying, apologizing, giving up, you train yourself to smile, hold your head up, and laugh. You delight in this opportunity to learn and keep going without losing any momentum.

Think: How can I fight my dislike for failure? How can I enjoy failure?

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About Drew the Dramatic Fool

Drew Richardson"If Teller of ‘Penn & Teller’ had ever become pregnant by Harpo Marx, Drew Richardson would be the one to arrive out of that strange scientific amalgamation." —Film Threat

I've been studying, teaching, and performing Visual Comedy Theater for the past 20 years. I was also the first person in the 21st century to make new short silent movies for mainstream movie theaters.http://www.dramaticfool.com